Declan + Coraline Read Online Free PDF Page A

than an inch away from me.
    “I waited all day yesterday for you to call,” he said, and I watched as his eyes drifted from my eyes to my lips to my neck and then to my chest. “I’ve never waited for a woman to call, or have a woman reject mine.”
    “I was busy,” I lied.
    He frowned and looked me over as though he could see through my lie.
    “Do you have a boyfriend, Coraline?” he asked me as we walked towards the exit.
    “What?”
    “Do. You. Have. A. Boyfriend?” he repeated.
    We were outside and Father Thomas was already making the rounds and greeting everyone.
    “Why?”
    “Just wondering if that was the reason you didn’t call. And if it is, how hard am I going to have work?” he asked as he stuck his hands into his pocket.
    He was by far the most direct man I had ever met in my life.
    “What are you trying to work for, Mr. Callahan?”
    He smirked. “Our date, of course.”
    “And if I have a boyfriend?” I whispered still unsure if this was a dream or reality. Men like him weren’t real, or at least for me, they weren’t.
    “I would steal you away in front of him,” he said, as he closed the gap between us.
    He blocked the sun as he stood before me; all I could see was him. But I didn’t want to give into him.
    “And what if I have a fiancé?”
    “I would steal you away right under his nose. After all, it would be his fault for not giving you a ring.”
    I hid my hands behind my back.
    “And if I have a husband?”
    “Then you’ve made a terrible mistake. And once we’ve rectified the situation, I’d have you,” he whispered as he brushed my hair behind my ear. “Are we done with this game now, Ms. Wilson?”
    “I have to give it to you, Mr. Callahan, you are smooth.” I smiled brightly as I took a step back.
    “But you still aren’t convicted about me,” he stated and under his breath. And I could have sworn he added, “You have some instincts.” But I wasn’t sure, maybe it was my own subconscious talking to me.
    I looked away. “Like I said, I’ve met men like you before.”
    “And like I said—no you haven’t.”
    I glanced back at him to find that his eyes were still on me. “Thank you for being interested me in, Declan. Seriously, it’s the best I’ve felt about myself in a while. But I—I’m not the dating type.”
    “Okay. Walk away. But don’t look back or else I won’t give up on you,” he said.
    “Okay.” I nodded as I walked around him.
    Don’t look back.
    Don’t look back.
    Coraline, don’t look back! I begged myself as I grabbed on to the door handle of my car.
    “Coraline!”
    I turned back and he grinned only a few feet away from me.
    “That’s cheating!”
    “According to who? The rule was don’t look back , I never said I wouldn’t call out to you. Do people really give up so easily in your world?”
    Yes. And I couldn’t deny the part of me that was happy that he’d called out to me.
    “Are people always this stubborn in your world?”
    “Sweetheart, I’m Irish. They don’t come any more stubborn than that.” He pushed my car door closed, preventing me from getting in. “And since you looked back, let’s go somewhere.”
    “I’m busy.”
    “That was your excuse for not calling yesterday. Besides it’s Sunday, you shouldn’t be working. You just came back to Chicago, I should show you everything you’ve missed out on.”
    “Chicago hasn’t changed that much.”
    “That’s where you are wrong. Chicago changes every night.”
    I bit my lip hard, unsure of what I should do…or at least my mind was unsure, my body however, turned towards him.
    “It’s not a date,” I clarified.
    He nodded. “Sure. It’s not a date.”
    “Then I’ll drive myself—”
    “Waste of gas. Come on.” He took me by the hand and dragged me towards his dark gray Aston Martin. I held on to his hand just as tightly as he held on to mine. When he opened the door for me, I slid into the passenger seat and dropped my bag next to my feet.